At St Lawrence College, the Junior School Gardening Club has been running for the last three years. Pupils have loved learning how to take care of the flowers they have planted and to see them bloom. The vegetables were ready to be harvested during the period of online learning, so the pupils did not manage to harvest the radishes, parsley, cabbage or cauliflower this season, but we hope next year will be kinder to us and our budding, green-fingered children! 

Last week saw St Lawrence College's Sports Day take place, but this time without spectators and on a different day for each year group. Pupils competed in 60 m. races and a tug of war. Despite the change in circumstances, the pupils put on a superb display of sportsmanship and we saw some incredible displays of skill.

Below are the winners of the 60m races for Years 7,8,9 and 10. Well done to all involved!

Yr. 7

girls 

1. Mando Glymakopoulos
2. Vasiliki Konti
3. Melina Petric and Aikaterini Mandenaki

boys

1. Adrian Delaportas
2. Tristan Shauman
3. Alexandros Roberts Taoufik

Yr. 8

girls

1. Estheleen Charalambidi
2. Zoe Courts
3. Angeliki Nouvaki

Boys

1. Odysseas Mandenakis
2. Jack Courts
3. Mohamed Abdel Fattah

Yr. 9

girls

1. Marita Katsouridis
2. Amaryllis Markopoulou
3. Wang Yifei

boys

1. Dimitris Valkanis
2. Jake Grand
3. Konstantinos Chachaopoulos

Yr. 10

girls

1. Monica Colombo
2. Kleopatra Anastasiou
3. Danni Zhu

Boys

1. Constantinos Iliadis
2. Louis Ritchie-Clement
3. Constantinos Voulgaridis

Year 6 at St Lawrence College has been feeling very creative in recent weeks with a definite theme going on - Harry Potter no less! During the Spring term, Year 6 studies the world of Harry Potter, learning so much about writing, story telling, plot and character. Of course, you cannot keep creativity out of it when talking about Hogwarts adventures, so it's only natural the children were asked to redesign book covers for the most well-known of the novels - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Look at what a wonderful job our children did at home in online lessons. Marvellous, don't you think?

During the weekend of Saturday 3^rd and Sunday 4^th of October 2020, 13 pupils of our school, from Year 8 to Year 13, took part in a “different” online MUN Conference organised by Campion School under the guidance of Ms Kladouchou and Ms Tsirigoti.

It was their first experience of an online public speaking event and for some even their first experience of an MUN Conference. Yet, both the old and the new members of our school’s MUN Club enjoyed the experience enormously. Two of our oldest pupils were Presidents of WHO (World Health Organisation) and ICC (International Criminal Court) respectively and made themselves and the school very proud with the calm and effective guidance they provided to all delegates of their committees. Three of our younger pupils, two of whom took part for their very first time, were voted ‘Best Delegate’ or were awarded an ‘honourable mention’ for their successful preparation and impressive presence in their committees, the ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council), the WHO and the Special Political and Decolonisation Committee respectively.

We all feel very proud of them, not only because they sacrificed their whole weekend for this participation but also because they did show that extracurricular activities can be performed and enjoyed even during these unprecedented times. Well done to all participants and good luck with their preparation for the next MUN Conference, the DSAMUN!

As we head towards the end of June 2020, the children of the junior school are quietly unwinding and dreaming about the summer holidays ahead. The teachers are really happy to have had these few weeks back at school to reconnect with their classes and finish off the academic year with some semblance of normality. What a rollercoaster of a year it was! But when we can take the time to sit with our children in a shady spot, read a book or discuss a topic of interest in class, we realise the importance of just being together as a group and sharing the pleasure of each other's company. That's what school is about, after all. 

On Wednesday 20th November 2019, Year 5 pupils who follow the Ancient Greek History course visited the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. The pupils toured the Prehistoric Collections including an educational programme on the main characteristics of these civilisations. They focused on architecture, weaponry, pottery, sculpture, wall-paintings, jewellery and burial customs. 

A week later, on Wednesday 27th November, some Year 6 pupils were taken to the Historical Museum of Athens where the Old Parliament is located. The children sat in the old auditorium there and learned about the Greek flag, traditional costumes, Greek heroes of bygone times and the story of the Revolution. They were interested in the Playmobil exhibition there too, which taught them about the past through interactive games.

Where better to learn about the vibrant history of Greece but here in the heart of the capital?

On the 15th of November,Year 1 pupils visited the Toy Museum in Faliro as part of their topic on Old Books and Toys. The children were fascinated as they had never seen so many different kinds of old playthings.They were introduced to the first 'toys' from thousands years ago, learning how they changed through the ages. The children's tour was led by a guide and a doll with a mop. When asked what they thought, the children all agreed, "It was brilliant!"

On Tuesday 15th October, 2019, our 6 and 7 year olds in year 2 took a short trip up north to the leafy suburb of Kifissia where they visited the Goulandris Museum. They have been learning all about living things in their unit of topic work, studying insects and all kinds of animals. They played some engaging learning games and took a good look at all the exhibits on display there. Taking your learning out of the classroom always adds that extra element of fun!

On the mildest of evenings, Friday 11th October 2019, St. Lawrence College held its annual celebration of all things autumnal. 

The classic pumpkin display, which has become a legendary affair, was taken to new heights this year with families showing there are no limits to the imagination when it comes to carving a Jack o' Lantern. Whether it was cute, ghoulish, harvest themed or just funny, they impressed all who set eyes upon them. 

Costumes of pupils, families and friends were particularly enthusiastic this year with everything from replicas of The Adams Family to skeletons, witches, cats and vampires plus everything in between. 

Stalls selling a wide range of products both creative and fun were as busy as the food and drinks counters ensuring all guests had their fill of hot dogs, souvlaki and sweet ‘loukoumades’ and the rest. All in all, another amazing night of celebration that is surely the highlight of the season!
 

This month, everyone at St. Lawrence College was delighted to learn that one of our pupils, Xinting He, has received a prestigious award from Cambridge Assessment International Education to acknowledge her outstanding performance in the June 2018 examination series. Xinting, who is currently studying A Levels in Year 12, was recognised for achieving the highest mark in the world for IGCSE Mandarin Chinese.
The Outstanding Cambridge Learner Awards programme celebrates the accomplishments of learners taking Cambridge examinations in over 40 countries around the world. Thousands of candidates take a total of over 800,000 IGCSEs every year and to get the highest mark in a subject is, therefore, a huge achievement. Congratulations Xinting on your wonderful success!

On Wednesday 21^st November, Year 6 was the first junior school group to take an active trip to the Hellenic Cosmos Museum in Athens to participate in a really cool ‘live’ exhibition. With high tech features to bring ancient and modern Olympic sports to life, the children tried out a range of sporting events alongside some of the greatest names in sporting history. Tired but happy children returned to school with a smile, and it’s not long till years 4 and 5 have their turns too!

The Archaeology Club started its third year with a new project: the study of the island of Delos. Drawing on the experience of adopting an ancient theatre in the previous two years, the members of the Club will study the theatre as well as other remains of the site. The Delos Project offers a unique opportunity for our pupils to experience and appreciate the function of a whole ancient settlement, as Delos is an uninhabited island, an island which is an archaeological site by itself. To start this project, the Archaeology Club travelled to Mykonos and visited the island of Delos on the 26th of October 2018. The pupils experienced a walk through the ruins of the ancient sanctuary, the foreign temples, the theatre and the residences as well as the cave with the altar of Hercules. They are now ready to start their research and study of the site.

On Saturday 7^th October our school participated in the 10^th ‘Race for the Cure’ in the centre of Athens. The ‘Race’ is organised every year in many big cities around the world and Athens is one of them with the participation exceeding in numbers many of the corresponding events abroad. The aim of the occasion is to raise awareness to the fact that breast cancer can be cured if diagnosed early and therefore prevention through medical tests is now a possibility that can no longer be ignored. As we have for the past ten years, our school once again took part in the run and the walk with the pupils, parents and teachers of our school all being there in Zappeio on what was a sunny Sunday morning to declare our desire for a world with less pain and more hope.

Heats for the flat races, as well as final races for Years 1-6. Relays for years 4,5 & 6. All day event.

On Friday 29^th March, the pupils in Key Stage 2 (Years 3 to 6) will have a day of invention and fun in the indoor gymnasium at the Junior School Science Fair. The children submitting an investigation will present their projects to a panel and be judged on their scientific thinking, analysis and conclusions. The winning entries from each year group will win a prize!